Thanking his lucky streak: Sumesh Krisshnan

His story is the oft-heard one of how a model became an actor, but what makes Sumesh Krisshnan different is his beginner’s luck. Luck and being in the right place at the right time are what matters in tinsel town and Sumesh had large doses of both. The model-turned-actor has acted in Bollywood, Kollywood and now in Malayalam with stars like Akshay Kumar, Ajith, Vijay and now, Sreesanth.

Marking his Mollywood debut, Sumesh will be playing the antagonist in the film Team 5. Years back, Sumesh was friends with Team 5’s producer Raj Zachariah in Mumbai, but lost touch with him over a period of time. Sumesh continues, “It so happened that I was in Kochi to meet some people and I was informed that Raj was looking for an actor to play the antagonist in his film. I reconnected with Raj and got the part.”

All of us know of Sreesanth the cricketer, but what about Sreesanth the actor? Sumesh answers, “I personally feel that Sreesanth should have stepped into films much earlier. He is very good with his craft and takes his work very seriously. I am often asked about his legendary hot-headedness and attitude, but contrary to perceptions, I found him very cool and down to earth. It was a pleasure working alongside him!”  

The film has a lot of bike stunts, but Sumesh did not get to do any daredevil acts though he has a bike racing scene with Sreesanth. Born and brought up in Mangalore, Sumesh has roots in Neeleeswaram in Kerala, but is settled in Mumbai for his career prospects. Armed with a software qualification, Sumesh did the 9-5 office grind, but soon got bored with the monotony. He also could not indulge in his favourite pursuit — travelling. Soon he bid adieu to his secure job and waded into the dog-eat-dog world of modelling. He continues, “I got to travel, meet people and it was all what I wanted.”  

Incidentally, Sumesh was one of the contestants of the Gladrags contest and has worked in prestigious commercials and walked the ramp too. The plunge into films had Sumesh surfacing with two plum projects — Arambam opposite Ajith and Thupakki opposite Vijay. In between, he also did Special Chabbis opposite Akshay Kumar in which he played a Tamilian. Sumesh gushes, “I am a huge fan of Akshay right from his Mohra days and to act opposite him was a dream come true!” Sumesh took time off to set up a business but decided to return to films and Team 5 happened. He has some big projects in the pipeline.